Instead, its decision to abandon the Doha trade round, launched in 2001, made it clear we have passed the high-water mark of globalisation. This conclusion was reinforced by the fact that only a few of the news media even mentioned the topic.

Two key figures also set out their views on the way forward:

China’s premier Wen, signalled that its lending slowdown will continue: “I will especially stress that there will not be the slightest wavering in China’s property-tightening measures–our target is for prices to return to reasonable levels.” Prices have already begun to fall by 20-40% in the major cities, and clearly more falls are on the way.

Italy’s premier Berlusconi was still in denial, however, claiming the country’s problems with its debt mountain were “a passing fashion“, and noting that “the restaurants are full, the planes are fully booked, and the hotel resorts are fully booked as well“.

And that, as far as the blog can discover, was that.

About Paul Hodges

Paul Hodges is Chairman of International eChem, trusted commercial advisers to the global chemical industry. Paul is also an invited member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council. The aim of this blog is to share ideas about the influences that may shape the chemical industry over the next 12 – 18 months. It will try to look behind today’s headlines, to understand what may happen next in important issues such oil prices, economic growth and the environment. We may also have some fun, investigating a few of the more offbeat events that take place from time to time. Please do join me and share your thoughts. Between us, we will hopefully develop useful insights into the key factors that will drive the industry's future performance.

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Paul Hodges is Chairman of International eChem, trusted commercial advisers to the global chemical industry.

The aim of this blog is to share ideas about the influences that may shape the chemical industry over the next 12 – 18 months. It will try to look behind today’s headlines, to understand what may happen next in important issues such oil prices, economic growth and the environment. We may also have some fun, investigating a few of the more offbeat events that take place from time to time. Please do join me and share your thoughts.

Between us, we will hopefully develop useful insights into the key factors that will drive the industry's future performance.